Safety Updates: New Car Seat Recommendations & A New Government Web Site

There has been some big news on the safety front in the past week. Yesterday, the American Academy of Pediatrics updated its car seat recommendations, and recommended that children should ride rear-facing until age 2, instead of age 1. Of course, the limitations on the car seat should be heeded, as some children become too long or heavy to ride rear-facing depending on the car seat before they turn 2. Some seats have higher limits than others – convertible seats by Britax come to mind, for example. If you have an infant, this is definitely something you should discuss with your pediatrician and other safety experts you may come into contact with.

The other big safety news is that the CPSC has launched a new web site for product safety at SaferProducts.gov, where consumers can submit reports of harm or risks of harm, and search for safety information on products they own or may be considering buying. Hopefully that submit feature will actually be useful to the government, and not full of silly reports that end up being a waste of time. For recall notices, you should continue to subscribe at the CPSC web site.

@Paula – I think it depends on how important you believe safety is and whether or not you're willing to put your foot down. I've talked with my children since they were young about why the car seat is important, etc. But I don't know how effective that would have been when they were under 2!